According to a report in The Australian, the Bowen Basin open-cut mining complex has notified 180 of its 230 workers of the furlough and said production will cease if market conditions do not get better.
“Lower coal prices and market oversupply have contributed to Collinsville incurring financial losses during 2015,” Glencore officials said; the company is 55% owner in the mine. “In 2016, we will phase down overburden removal and only produce coal from in-pit inventory and field stockpiles. We will reassess the situation during the year.”
The layoffs are a second round for the mine in about six months; 80 miners were cut from its payroll in May.
Itochu Coal Resources and Sumitomo are Glencore’s joint venture partners in Collinsville, which has been in operation since 1919. The thermal complex produces about 2.9 million metric tons annually.
